7. Raphael
Raphael
7
“Note to self,” I mumble while rummaging through my sparse and empty pantry. “Order a shit ton of groceries.”
Cooking comes naturally to me as an Italian, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy it. The prospect of cooking for just myself as a bachelor became dull, and the loneliness of eating alone was even worse. I'd sooner eat out or go to the estate to enjoy Mom’s delicious cooking. She won’t admit it, but with all the kids grown up and out of the house, she’s constantly looking for an excuse to cook for someone more than her and Dad.
The fridge is no better. The eggs are past their expiration date by a week, and the cheese has a green and fuzzy growth. Surprisingly, the only thing that’s still good is the milk. Which makes sense since I always pair it with my morning cup of coffee.
Just as I’m making a cup on the espresso machine, my phone rings, just as I expected it would sometime this morning.
“Good morning, Dad.”
“Buongiorno, son. Michael will be by to pick you up shortly. We need to talk about last night.”
And then he hangs up. That's fair, really, since neither of us got what we wanted last night. Like watching Xiao’s miserable little life drain from his eyes.
“I’m hungry.”
I turn away from the counter to see Mei perched on a barstool on the opposite side of the island. In the light of a new day, it’s easier to see her unique physical features courtesy of her mixed blood. Her hair isn’t quite jet black and falls past her shoulders with a slight wave to it. The shape of her eyes resembles her dad’s, but they are the most striking blue, just like her mother’s.
“Well, good morning, Mei. What are you hungry for?”
“I don’t know.”
My interaction with children is limited, especially given how my nephew isn’t even crawling yet, but from what I’ve been told, kids rarely know what they want since it changes on a dime.
“Well, unfortunately, I’m all out of ‘I don’t know.’ Maybe some cereal?” I remember spying a box in the sparse pantry.
“Yes, please!” As Mei starts on her second bowl of cereal, crashing sounds and running footsteps fill the penthouse, followed by a loud and frightened shout of “Mei!”
A second later, Lily comes barreling around the corner of the hallway and into the kitchen. Her eyes widen as she searches the open space for her daughter. When she finds Mei happily swinging her legs at the island and eating her breakfast, her alarm evaporates into immediate relief.
“Hi, Mommy,” Mei greets through a mouthful of food, oblivious to her mother’s anxiety.
My eyes track Lily’s movements as she approaches. She runs her fingers through her tousled blond hair; the strands fall in a carefree manner, accenting her face’s delicate bone structure. She’s wearing a simple black shirt she must have found in the dresser that falls just above her knees, exposing a pair of toned, pale legs.
It leaves me suddenly dying to know what she’s wearing beneath. If she’s wearing anything at all. And how those legs of hers would look over my shoulders while I—
Clearing my throat, I force myself to look away before Lily notices me gawking at her like a man with a one-track mind.
But she’s so focused on Mei that she doesn’t even look at me. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”
Mei drops her shoulders, and her feet go still as she finally senses her mom’s nerves. “Sorry, Mommy. I tried, but you were sleeping, and I was hungry.”
Ah. Lily woke up to find Mei gone. Of course, she panicked. To find your daughter missing when you wake up somewhere strange and new is terrifying enough to scare any mom.
Lily sighs and then steps forward to hug her daughter. She kisses the crown of her dark head and mumbles, “That’s okay, sweetheart.”
“Did you get any sleep?” I ask over the rim of my coffee cup.
Lily looks at me for the first time. Her gaze lingers on my morning attire—gym shorts and a loose T-shirt that exposes my sculpted and tattooed arms. I always start my day with a workout whenever possible, and after last night, I had a lot to get off my chest.
Visibly swallowing, Lily looks away and clears her throat. “I did. Thank you.”
Pleased, I gesture behind me. “Coffee is over there with sugar in the bowl next to it, and there’s milk in the fridge. I don’t have much in terms of groceries because I wasn’t expecting…guests, but I’ll have some delivered today. For now, all I can offer is cereal.”
“Thanks,” Lily murmurs.
Moving about the kitchen, she prepares a cup of black coffee with a splash of milk and a spoonful of sugar but doesn’t touch the cereal. Something I make a mental note of.
The entire time, I keep still, but my eyes follow her movements. She walks with a stiffness that isn’t from fear but from pain. It seems her “dresser” injury is bothering her this morning.
I wait for her to sit, then open a cabinet and take out a plastic bottle of painkillers. I fill a glass with water and then place both items in front of Lily. She glances between them and my face before she murmurs another small thank you. Popping the top, she shakes out a couple before swallowing them with the glass of water.
The security panel chimes, letting me know someone punched in the code to my penthouse in the elevator and is on their way up. Lily’s eyes shoot in the direction with heightened concern.
“Hey.” I wait until she finally looks back at me before continuing. “Each penthouse has a unique security code. The doors won’t open without it, and only a select few I trust know mine.”
I grab my coffee and leave the kitchen to intercept my brother before she can say anything back.
“Rose,” I greet, pleasantly surprised to see my future sister-in-law walk out of the elevator beside Michael with Liam strapped to her chest in one of those body wrap things designed for babies. “What are you doing here?”
“Michael brought me up to speed last night, and when his dad called this morning, I offered to keep Lily and her daughter company. If they’d like that, I mean.”
“I’m sure they’ll love the company.”
“Is that coffee?” Michael begs. “Oh it is, thank the Lord,” he groans, and before I know it, he steals the cup from my hands.
“Wha—”
Rose gives her husband a disapproving side-eye glance. “Liam’s been fussy. We’ve barely slept for more than an hour.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Michael snorts and grumbles, “Yeah, I’m sure you are.”
“Aw, did someone not get enough beauty sleep?”
Rose lightly snorts. “That’s better than what I said.”
“What did you say?”
“That he woke up on the wrong side of the bed and to try again.”
Michael mocks us in a muttering tone beneath his breath. And from the look on Rose’s face, she’s enjoying her fiancé's torment immensely. She’s a kind and sweet woman with a heart of gold. But she’s also incredibly strong and stubborn, with a tenacious spirit that matches Michael’s headstrong and proud streak. She calls him out on his bullshit better than anyone else. Honestly, there’s no one better for my brother, and I’m thrilled that they have found happiness together after everything they went through to get here.
“Come on, cranky. There’s more coffee in the kitchen.” I hook my brother around the neck and tug him along with me, laughing when he tries hard to land a blow to my side to break free.
Lily and Mei stare at us in equal parts of surprise and fright when we come around the corner. Her eyes shift between Michael and me. I sometimes forget that we’re twins. Even though my tattoos and longer hairstyle set us apart, the initial look can be overwhelming.
“Lily, this is my twin brother, Michael, and his fiancée, Rose. The little one there is their son, Liam.”
My rude-ass older brother grumbles a “good morning” and then turns away to fill a travel mug full of black coffee.
“Don’t forget the sugar, dear,” Rose reminds him with a condescending sweet smile.
Michael slowly spins around and returns the smile with narrowed eyes. If I know my brother, and I do, Rose just poked a furious bear who only knows how to fight back against sarcasm with more than his claws. “Oh, don’t worry, dear. I got plenty of sugar this morning. Or did you forget about how you woke up with my mouth between—”
“Okay.” I interrupt in a loud voice, remembering a young child present before I nod toward my guests. “Michael, Rose, this is Lily and her daughter, Mei.”
“Good morning,” Rose chirps cheerfully, making my brother groan and rub at his temples. Have I mentioned how much my brother hates mornings when he hasn’t slept well? “It’s really nice to meet you.”
Lily offers Rose a tentative smile that doesn’t look too forced. “It’s nice to meet you too.”
“I have to go with Michael to see our dad,” I tell Lily, leaning one hip on the corner of the island before her. She shifts in her seat, tugging the shirt farther down her legs, but not before I get my answer to the question of what she’s wearing beneath it. And it’s not sleep shorts. It takes my brain a second to refocus and continue. “Rose has kindly offered to keep you two company. How does that sound?”
Hesitation is clear all over Lily’s face, a sign that she’s about to turn down the offer. My hope sinks more just before Rose steps in, having seen it too. “I know you don’t know me, but I was hoping I could pick your brain about motherhood? Liam’s been fussy lately, and I could use some advice. From one mom to another?”
I have to hand it to Rose. The woman knows how to tug at the heartstrings of anyone, even those that belong to a heart locked behind a steel door. Appeal to the mother in Lily and score one for Rose.
Lily nods sincerely, which pleases me because I want her to be comfortable. If Rose can help with even a fraction of that, then I’m more than happy for her to be here. “Of course. I’ll try to help.”
“Alright. On that note, we have to go,” Michael announces before he steps forward and gathers Rose in his arms to kiss her. When she releases a tiny moan, I glance away to catch Lily watching them with a soft pink blush on her cheeks. When she notices me looking at her, her blush grows darker before she quickly looks away from the rising embarrassment. I’m not sure if it’s from being caught or from something else, but I’m very curious to find out which.